Sixty-four alumni of the University of the Philippines were recognized during this year’s UP Alumni Association (UPAA) Awards, joining a list of distinguished individuals, groups, and families who were selected based on honor, excellence, and service.
This year’s awardees include 47 individual awardees, three outstanding UP alumni chapters, four recipients of the Presidential Service Award, and 10 awardees of the Multigenerational Alumni Family Award.
Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, who graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree of Political Science in 1968, was awarded this year’s UPAA Most Distinguished Alumni. He previously served as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
The UPAA also awarded five Distinguished Achievement Awards, including Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla, and Associate Justice Jhosep Lopez.
Distinguished Alumni Awards were also given to Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman, Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA) Secretary Ernesto Perez, Court of Appeals Associate Justice Angelene Mary Quimpo-Sale, and Justice Undersecretary Jesse Hermogenes Andres.
UPAA Presidential Awards were given to Solicitor General Darlene Marie Basco Berberabe, former Baguio Representative Marquez Go, and Ambassador Rosario Gonzales-Manalo.
“Beyond professional excellence, we looked for the strength of their leadership, the depth of their service, and the magnitude of their impact. These awardees reflect the very best of what it means to be an Iskolar ng Bayan,” UPAA president and Alumni Regent Robert Lester Aranton said. — Jon Viktor D. Cabuenas/BM, GMA Integrated News
